FloTHERM is powerful 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software that predicts airflow and heat transfer in and around electronic equipment, from components and boards up to complete systems. Learn More →

PCB Design Blog

The close of DesignCon features the Best in Design & Test Awards. The awards span a variety of categories from design tools, to test, to validation and fabrication. We joined a few dozen other eager folks in the Chip Head Theater for the presentation of the awards.
Since there was no one available from the Xpedition flow, all eyes fell on me to accept the award, should we win. Now, I’m more of a … Read More

Shortly after I graduated with my Associates degree in technical drafting, I entered the world of computer aided design. I trained in CAD technology on one of the very first computer design systems – CEADS CAD, and we young bucks could not wait to jump right into drawing designs on the computer screen.
Our teacher, a tall Texan with a big stern voice, told us that we might come across many CAD systems … Read More

It’s interesting that in only 2 of the last 5 years PCB design tools made the EDN top 100 Hot Products. In 2013 and again in 2014, of the 7 products in the EDA category of the Hot 100 only 3 were PCB product related. At Mentor Graphics we are therefore absolutely delighted that for 2014 we received 2 of the 3 top 100 Hot product ratings for the high end of PCB System design with Xpedition® xSD and … Read More

This is the second post in a series showcasing the winners of the 2014 Technology Leadership Awards. View the first here.
First place winner in the Computers, Blade & Servers, and Memory Systems category: Seagate Technology, United States.
Design: The team used all of the “tricks in the book” to achieve placement and routing within the speed/timing parameters on their mid-range enterprise solid-state … Read More

As you may already know, the Xpedition VX.1 release is now available to customers. I encourage you to take some time to evaluate it because if there is one thing to mention about this release, it is that you will be able to increase your productivity significantly. It can be downloaded at SupportNet.
We have added some new interactive routing styles that complement the existing ones quite well. The … Read More

Have you ever designed a PCB in less than an hour? Did you include part searching and designing the schematic in the hour? Now you can…
In December 2014, Mentor Graphics in partnership with Digi-Key Corporation released an innovative PCB flow called Designer. Designer Schematic and Designer Layout are basic PCB schematic and layout tools but with the addition of PartQuest, these tools out perform … Read More

This is the first in a series showcasing the winners of the 2014 Technology Leadership Awards.
The votes are in for the 2014 TLAs! Congratulations to the 2014 Technology Leadership Award winners! Started in 1988, this program is the longest running competition of its kind in the electronic design automation (EDA) industry. The competition recognizes engineers and designers who use innovative methods … Read More

Typically my blogs speak of PCB layout technology and the company I work for, but this one is a bit different.
During this season of reflection and celebration, I’d like to take some time to honor the special friends that have passed during the year. We place these friends and our fondest thoughts “into memory,” in hopes to keep their legacies alive. I’d also like to recognize another great PCB … Read More

As I sit here still recovering from the Thanksgiving feast of turkey and all of the trimmings, I am reminded that this is the time of year we give thanks and gifts to our friends and loved ones. Christmas is just around the corner, and the holiday season is in full swing.
Speaking of giving thanks…I’d like to thank you for following along with me here on the blog! I also have an exciting announcement … Read More

In my last post I mentioned my recent conversation about autorouting with several PCB designers at the IPC Council meeting in Irvine, California. Take a look at the previous post, Auto Assisted Routing: “I ain’t got time for that!” You will see that there are mixed feelings about autorouting, and many think we needed something better.
The IPC meeting that I’m referring to happened to be all about routing … Read More

For most busses, length-matching a group of signals to 5 mils is a bit of overkill. But, if length-matching to 5 mils is as easy for your layout personnel as length-matching to 100 mils, why not get the extra margin? However, for very fast serial links, length-matching the two side of a differential pair is absolutely crucial. That is one of the key steps I discuss in my article “Ten Steps … Read More

My grandma always told me not to sweat the small stuff, and since she just celebrated her 100th birthday, I am inclined to take her advice. Unfortunately, that advice does not extend well to 10GHz serial links on a PCB, where you really DO need to sweat the small stuff. With edge rates on the order of 50ps (that’s about 300 mils long on a PCB), 10GHz signals get affected by almost any discontinuity … Read More